Receptacle for upholstered furniture



Nov. 20, 1956 c. c. COLE 2,771,127

RECEPTACLE FOR UPHOLSTERED FURNITURE Filed Sept. 18, 1953 Clifford 6.00/19 IN V EN TOR.

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United States Patent RECEPTACLE FOR UPHOLSTERED FURNITURE Clifford C. Cole, Hayward, Calif.

Application September 18, 1953, Serial No. 380,932

1 Claim. (Cl. 155188) This invention relates to new and useful improvements and structural refinements in upholstered furniture, and the principal object of the invention is to prevent accumulation of foreign material in the crevices which usually exist between adjacent walls of the furniture structure.

The above object is achieved by the provision of a receptacle which is intended to be removably positioned in such crevices, so that any foreign material such as may gather in the crevices will fall into the receptacle, from which it may be conveniently removed.

Some of the advantages of the invention reside in its simplicity of construction, in its efiicient and dependable operation, and in its adaptability for use in upholstered furniture of different varieties.

These together with other objects and advantages which will become subsequently apparent reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

Figure 1 is a side elevational view of a piece of upholstered furniture, the same being partially broken away so as to show the invention therein;

Figure 2 is a vertical, sectional view of the receptacle per se; and

Figure 3 is a group perspective view illustrating a set of receptacles such as may be employed in conjunction with a single piece of furniture.

Referring now to the accompanying drawings in detail, the general reference character designates a conventional piece of upholstered furniture, such as for example, a chair, a sofa, or the like, the same including the customary base portion 12, a back rest portion 14, and one or more seat cushions 16, as will be clearly understood. The back rest portion 14 has a substantially upright wall 18 which is in closely spaced relation with a similar substantially upright wall 20 of the base portion 12, so that a crevice 22 usually exists in which foreign material may accumulate.

The instant invention resides in the provision of a flexible receptacle which is designated generally by the reference character 24 and is removably positioned in the crevice 22 so as to catch and hold such foreign material for easy and convenient disposition.

The receptacle 24 is substantially trough-shaped and is preferably V-shaped in cross sectional configuration,

2,771,127 Patented Nov. 20, 1956 the ends 26 of the receptacle being closed, the bottom of the receptacle also being closed and comprising a solid thickened bottom portion 28 of wedge shape in crosssection with a transversely rounded apex edge 28', while the top 30 of the receptacle is open.

An elongated, resilient reinforcing element or rib 32 is embedded in the bottom portion 28 of the receptacle, while a pair of similar, elongated, and resilient elements or ribs 34 are embedded in the upper edges of the side Walls 38 of the receptacle, the resiliency of the ribs 34 being such as to urge the walls 36 apart and retain the top 30 of the receptacle in its open position.

A plurality of convenient handles 38 may be affixed to one of the side walls 36 so that the entire receptacle may be readily removed for purposes of emptying and it will be clearly apparent from Figure 3 it is intended that the invention be used in a set including one substantially long receptacle 24 for the back of the furniture piece and a pair of relatively short receptacles 24A for the sides of the furniture piece. The receptacles 24A are similar in construction to the receptacle 24, and, therefore, a detailed description thereof is believed to be unnecessary.

From the foregoing, the construction and operation of the device will be readily understood and further explanation is believed to be unnecessary. However, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction shown and described, and accordingly all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the appended claim.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

In an upholstered article of furniture having a back and a seat forming a crevice therebetween, an elongated open top and flexible receptacle for foreign matter removably inserted downwardly in said crevice, said receptacle comprising a closed bottom and ends, and side walls provided with top edges normally yieldingly bowed outwardly for frictional engagement with said back and seat, the bottom of the receptacle comprising a thickened solid portion of wedge shape in crosssection with a transversely rounded leading edge for facilitating insertion of the receptacle downwardly in said crevice, said bottom portion having a resilient reinforcing rib embedded longitudinally therein to yieldingly oppose deformation of said portion when the receptacle is being inserted, and a pair of handles attached to one side wall adjacent said ends and extending upwardly out of the receptacle for grasping to remove said receptacle.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,050,205 Conley Jan. 14, 1913 2,526,576 Nelson Oct. 17, 1950 2,637,918 Mayhew May 12, 1953 2,660,496 Lake Nov. 24, 1953 FOREIGN PATENTS 303,282 Great Britain Jan. 3, 1929 439,682 Great Britain Dec. 9, 1935 

